German Ingenuity award presented to Westdeutsche Dochtfabrik GmbH & Co. KG
WEDO was one of only two recipients of this award presented by the head of the Rheinland regional Chamber of Industry and Commerce Jürgen Steinmetz and District Chief Executive Dr. Andreas Coenen. The award was set up to honour medium sized companies which have demonstrated an exceptional degree of innovation and performance in a future-oriented area. There were a large number of nominees for the award and WEDO received theirs for the planning and implementation of a new ERP-System to digitalize manufacturing procedures.
IHK chief executive Jürgen Steinmetz (2nd from right) and district administrator Dr. Andreas Coenen (2nd from left) presented the awards to Helmut Gutberlet (right), managing director of Westdeutsche Dochtfabrik GmbH & Co. KG in Nettetal-Kaldenkirchen, and to Volker Sauerbaum, Managing Director of AC Aircontrols GmbH based in Kempen. Photo: IHK
The particular challenge here was to do this without disrupting the long and involved wick production process, as any significant downtime would have had far-reaching negative consequences for company and customers. The introduction took place stepwise, ensuring that the relevant staff members were involved and that their suggestions for changes/improvements could be taken into account, before moving on to the next phase or module. This helped gain the support and acceptance of those involved in the face of some quite wide-ranging changes to their workplace.
WEDO is now far better situated to face the demands of the future.
